1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the encoding of audio signals and the subsequent decoding of the encoded audio signals to generate an auditory scene during playback.
2. Description of the Related Art
In conventional stereo audio coding, the sum and the difference of the left and right audio channels of the stereo input signal are formed and then individually coded, e.g., using adaptive differential pulse code modulation (ADPCM) or some other suitable audio coding algorithm, to form an encoded audio bitstream. The corresponding conventional stereo audio decoding involves reversing the (ADPCM) coding algorithm to recover decoded sum and difference signals, from which left and right audio channels of a decoded stereo output signal are generated.
Although such conventional stereo audio coding/decoding (codec) techniques can produce an auditory scene during playback that accurately reflects the fidelity of the stereo input signal, the amount of data required for the corresponding encoded audio bitstream may be prohibitively large for some applications involving limited storage space and/or transmission bandwidth.